by Mary Leo
Her gut told her to insist she go alone, but her mind had other ideas. “I can be ready in twenty minutes.”
“Meet you in the lobby.”
* * *
TRAVIS AND BELLA stepped out the front door of Dream Weaver Inn. Bright sunshine caused everything to glow stinging Travis’s eyes as he walked alongside Bella. The air felt crisp and clean. Travis had an inclination to take her hand as they navigated the sidewalk, but then decided he didn’t want to push his luck.
He had a hard time believing he and Bella were heading to town together. It had been as easy as pulling a candy cane off a Christmas tree; they hadn’t even argued over the matter. It was so easy it got him to wondering if she didn’t have something devious stuck up her sleeve.
The first snowball hit Travis in the shoulder. The second snowball hit Bella squarely on top of her head.
“What the heck!” Bella said as she and Travis ducked behind a car parked alongside the curb.
At once Travis could hear the squeal of children laughing and the high-pitched giggle of his niece Scout. No other child had a giggle like Scout.
“You know this means war!” Travis yelled back at the group of children lobbing snowballs at them from across the deserted street.
“Do random children usually pelt people with snowballs?” Bella asked as she brushed the excess snow from her coat and hair.
Travis compressed a snowball between his gloved hands then lobbed it at the group of kids ducking behind a tall snow bank on the curb.
“These aren’t random kids, they’re my niece and nephews.”
“You’re dead meat, Uncle Travis,” Buddy, his brother Colt’s oldest, yelled. Buddy had recently turned thirteen years old and usually acted as the leader of the group.
“My sisters-in-law must be in town shopping.”
“Shouldn’t these kids be in school?”
He threw her a look. “Even Chicago must have snow days.”
“Of course they do, but...” And just as she said it, three snowballs hit her in succession. “Those little... Alright. Now you guys are in for it,” she yelled over to them and started making her own snowballs and lobbing them over at the kids. Of course, none of her snowballs were very dense, and neither were Travis’s. They didn’t want to hurt anybody. The fun of it was in the battle, not the score.
Soon there were so many snowballs bouncing back and forth that they were covered in snow and couldn’t lob any of their own, so they did the only thing they could.
They ran.
Travis grabbed her hand and they sprinted away as fast as they could, laughing as they headed down the sidewalk toward the shops. When they were far enough away, Bella pleaded with him to stop so she could catch her breath.
“I...need...to...rest,” she said taking in great big gulps of air as she bent over and supported her upper body by holding on to her thighs.
“And here I thought you were in shape,” Travis said.
She squinted up at him. “Whatever gave you that idea?”
He didn’t answer, but merely looked her over with a grin on his face.
“I work out...with weights. I’m not the jogger...type.”
“How are you at ice-skating? If I remember correctly, you used to be able to do circles around me.”
She finally caught her breath and stood. “What do you have in mind?”
“Skaits Ice Skating Rink is around the corner. Want to give it a whirl?”
“Old man Skaits never took very good care of the ice.”
“His sons run the business now. Wait ’til you see it. Come on.” He strolled toward the rink hoping she’d follow. The fact that she’d laughed over the snowball fight showed promise, as if the wall she kept around her had formed a crack. He was hoping to bring that wall completely down by the end of the day, or at the very least knock a few bricks off.
“I haven’t been on skates since I was a kid. Travis, wait up! I can’t do this. Travis!”
But he kept walking and she kept following and before he could hum a few bars of “White Christmas,” they were laced up in their rented skates and stepping onto the pristine ice.
As soon as she had both feet on the ice she grabbed his arm for support, a perk he hadn’t thought of when he came up with the idea of skating. He loved being this close to her, loved being able to smell her perfume, the scent of her hair, the feel of her body against his. He knew winning her affection would be like trying to catch a raindrop, but dang it all, he couldn’t help himself. She’d captured his heart a long time ago, and there was almost nothing she could do or say to free it from her grasp.
“This is crazy,” Bella said as she struggled to remain upright.
“It’s like riding a horse. Once you learn you never forget.”
“Easy for you to say.” Her feet went right out from under her and if it wasn’t for Travis holding on to her she’d have hit the ice. “I can’t do this.”
“Sure you can. Loosen up. I can feel how tense you are.”
“There are things that just don’t come back to you and this is one of them. I want to leave.”
They were almost to the center of the ice. Everyone else was skating around the edges with a few brave kids spinning in the center showing off classic moves. Johnny Mathis crooned “Sleigh Ride” over the speakers, and the air buzzed with the chatter and laughter of everyone having fun.
He let go of her and she stood stock-still, afraid to move. “I can’t believe you’re going to give up that easily. Where’s the fight? Where’s the drive? If you can’t muster up any grit, you’ll have to leave on your own, ’cause I’m staying.”
“You’re not serious.”
He skated away. “As serious as a bobcat up a tree.”
He joined the group circling the arena and when he came around and saw her again, she was skating in her own circle in the center. Granted, she was moving at a snail’s speed, but she was skating.
If Travis knew anything about Bella, he knew nobody was going to tell her that she’d lost her fight. No matter how scared she was of the situation, she would always come back punching. She’d never been the type of person to give up, and ice skating certainly wouldn’t be her downfall. When she was a kid she could outskate Travis, his brothers and most of the town.
And just like that, while Travis watched her screw up her courage, she dug in her toe picks and took off on the ice.
He’d known she would eventually let go of all her fears, allowing them to fly away like dandelions in the wind. Within minutes she’d discovered her ice legs and joined the rest of the group as they circled around the rink.
Soon Travis caught up to her. “I never doubted you.”
“Then I’ve taught you well,” she said and took off to the center to practice a few simple figure eights along with a couple spins thrown in to prove she still had it in her. At one point she took the time to teach a young girl how to do a few tricks on the ice, and then helped an older woman who couldn’t seem to get her footing on the ice. Travis marveled at how she unselfishly helped anyone around her who needed it, a total one-eighty from the girl who wanted to close her dad’s inn right before Christmas.
They skated for about two hours, joining forces from time to time, holding hands like they used to when they were kids. Back then Bella liked to show off so they’d do a lot of couples skating, but now holding on to each other seemed uncomfortable for her. They merely skated at a leisurely pace around the rink with the rest of the group.
Still, he enjoyed holding on to her, watching her smile and mouth the words to the carols. It was more than enough.
* * *
“THAT WAS FUN,” Bella said, as they left the rink and headed into town. She radiated happiness. It was the first time he’d seen her really beam since she’d arrived. The transformation
was astounding. Her cheeks and nose were rosy from the cold, her hair had pushed back off her lovely face and her smile was infectious.
“What’s been keeping you away from skating in Chicago? You seem to enjoy it, not to mention how good you are at it. Much better than me and I get on the ice every winter, mostly with my nephews.”
“Time, I guess. I don’t seem to have enough of it. I’m always working.”
She fixed her hair around her face, but Travis liked seeing it all pulled back, making her appear less formal, less severe.
“We all need to take a break every now and then. Playing is good for us.”
Travis was hoping she’d see what she’d been missing.
“I don’t believe in breaks, at least not until everything I’ve started is finished.”
“And I suppose that includes the sale of your dad’s inn.”
Her smile faded and Travis knew that was exactly the wrong thing to say.
“Yes. Thank you for reminding me. No more messing around. It’s getting late and the roads look as if they’ve been plowed. My dad’s probably on his way home by now. I need to get those new clothes and get back to the inn.” She glanced at her watch. “I’ve got some phone calls to make before it gets too late.”
Travis wanted to kick himself. All the ground he’d made with her had evaporated in a heartbeat. She had returned to her business mode and it didn’t seem as if Travis would be able to get her out of it this time.
Unless...
“Not a problem. But before you start shopping, Holy Rollers makes some of the best hot chocolate and cookies around.”
She hesitated.
Travis thought he had little chance of swaying her. But then she asked, “Do they have any of those fudgy chocolate cookies my dad used to make?”
Travis couldn’t believe his luck. “As a matter of fact, they do.”
She gazed at her watch again. “Okay, but only if we can stop in really quick.”
He knew there was absolutely no way anyone could get in and out of Holy Rollers quickly, especially this time of year. The place was a nonending line.
“Sure, in and out. Not a problem.”
“Then let’s go.”
* * *
BELLA HADN’T ALLOWED herself real hot chocolate and cookies in more years than she could remember. The combination of the two sent a sugar rush to her head that made for an almost euphoric experience. She couldn’t seem to stop herself from smiling at everyone who walked into Holy Rollers, which caused everyone to smile back with a “Merry Christmas” greeting. She had no choice but to nod and repeat the politically incorrect salutation. She knew better. “Happy Holidays” had been her greeting of choice whenever she was forced into responding, but no one in this town seemed to be of the “holiday” politically correct mind. Christmas was king in Briggs, and if she ate any more cookies, no doubt the mayor would christen her the town’s honorary greeter.
Holy Roller’s bakery had proved to be everything a bakery should be...not that Chicago didn’t have its share of bakeries. They did. Some of them were outstanding. But the charm that Holy Roller’s exuded from the glass display cases filled with an assortment of muffins, cookies, cakes, tarts and donuts to the antique tables and chairs set up along the redbrick wall couldn’t be surpassed in any big city.
Two hours later, as Bella took the last bite of her sixth fudgy cookie and scraped out the final bits of foam from the bottom of her second mug of hot cocoa, she sat back, completely content from her sugar high. Not only was she warmed by the atmosphere inside the bakery, but she was feeling more comfortable hanging out with Travis, despite his obsession for all things Christmas.
“Can I get you guys anything else?” Amanda asked. Bella instantly recognized her as Milo’s wife, the pink-haired twenty-something pregnant girl who had sat in the back of the sleigh belting out Christmas carols. She hadn’t paid much attention to her last night, not wanting to make friends with people she’d never see again, but Amanda was a true beauty with a friendly greeting for everyone who entered the bakery. She seemed like a traditional country girl, despite her bright pink, close-cropped hair. What Bella had noticed most was how protective Milo Gump, the bartender, had been of her. Milo had to weigh in around three hundred pounds to Amanda’s one hundred, yet he was as gentle to her as a baby lamb with its mama.
Travis looked over at Bella and she could tell he was trying to decide if she needed yet another refill on her hot chocolate.
“I’m fine, thanks,” she assured him and Amanda.
“I think we need a dozen of those fudgy cookies to go,” Travis told Amanda.
Bella thought about arguing, but then decided cookies as a late-night snack would be perfect with a tall glass of cinnamon milk, a treat her dad prepared especially for her whenever she couldn’t sleep. Something she hadn’t thought of since her mom tried to recreate it in their tiny kitchen in Chicago soon after they’d first arrived. Her mom couldn’t cook and had scorched the milk and added way too much cinnamon. It was awful, so Bella never asked for it again.
“Coming right up.” She turned to Bella. “So how long are you in town for?”
“At least until tomorrow.”
“Oh, you’ve got to stay until Christmas. That’s the absolute best holiday in Briggs, especially this year with all the fun events planned. My husband, Milo...do you remember him?”
“He’s not the kind of man anyone can easily forget.”
Amanda beamed. “Yeah, I know. He’s such a sweetie pie. We’ll be attending almost everything. The one we’re really looking forward to is the snow-sculpting contest out in front of your dad’s inn. You should participate. It’s such a hoot. Milo and I are carving a mini replica of the inn. We drew up the plans and everything. Your dad’s going to love it.”
The sugar high was fading, but looking into Amanda’s innocent eyes, then glancing over at Travis, who gave her a look as if she was on her own for this one, she couldn’t bring herself to tell the truth.
“I’m not much of an artist, but I’ll be there. I can’t wait to see how the snow inn turns out.”
Amanda clapped her hands in quick succession, not really making any noise, just pressing her fingers together, while her face lit up with genuine joy. Bella wondered how someone could be that excited over a snow-sculpting contest. “Travis promised to carve something this year. Usually he only judges, but this year he made a promise. I’m sure you can help him.”
She gazed over at Travis.
“Sure you can,” he told Bella, grinning. “I’d love it.”
Bella smiled up at Amanda. “I’ll certainly try.”
“Oh, you’ll do fine, I’m sure.”
Bella had stepped into it now. Not only had she agreed to stay until the contest, whenever that was, but she’d agreed to help carve out something corny, she was sure. Problem was, she had absolutely no intention of doing either one. Besides, all this good cheer and happiness was giving her a stomachache. Or was it the six cookies and refills of hot chocolate made with whole milk, no doubt.
She didn’t know about her malady, but she did know she couldn’t and shouldn’t stay, no matter how much she secretly wanted to. The whole idea of hanging around until Christmas seemed truly delightful and it was something she’d thought about many times while she was growing up.
She gazed over at Travis, who seemed to be enjoying himself and decided she simply could not allow herself to get sucked into this small-town madness. The inn had to close and the guests had to leave before Christmas Eve. That was the agreement she’d made with her father and with TransGlobal. And she intended to keep it.
Just not right now.
Chapter Four
Not only did the town of Briggs, Idaho, look like a post-card for Christmas mania, it sounded like it, as well. Nat King Cole crooned
his rendition of “Noel” as Bella and Travis exited Hess’s Department Store. She’d done some major damage to her credit card, charging three new sweaters, two pairs of jeans, a pair of warm, waterproof gray boots which she wore out of the store, practical and not-so-practical lingerie, warm pajamas, several scarves, a knit hat, as well as four pairs of fuzzy socks and two pairs of gloves. The gloves came with a third pair adorned with Santa, Rudolph and elf heads sewn onto the tops of each finger, like minipuppets complete with tiny beads for eyes. She had tried to tell the perky sales girl that she didn’t want or need the puppet gloves, but the girl wouldn’t hear of it. No matter. Warm clothing was essential, and the puppet gloves were one hundred percent wool. Not that she would ever purposely wear them.
She could barely carry everything and if it wasn’t for Travis offering to help, she wouldn’t have been able to make it up the street.
Problem was she wasn’t sure she wanted his help. It only perpetuated the problem she had being around him. The more time she spent with him the less anger she felt toward him and the more she wanted to feel his lips on hers...a thought that frightened her, especially now as they stood in front of her room at the inn.
“Thanks,” she told him after she unlocked and opened her door. “I had a nice day.”
“Me, too,” he said, standing a little too close. “Where do you want these?”
She began taking the bags from him not wanting him to step one foot in her room, knowing that if he did, she would never want him to leave.
“I can take them,” she told him.
“Not a problem.”
He ignored her request and entered the cozy room. The four-poster bed, made up in a thick wine-colored quilt, dominated the room, causing her to fantasize about making love to this grown-up Travis. The thought of his naked body pressed up against hers prompted a hot flash to race through her with such intensity that she couldn’t move away from the doorway.
“I’ll just put these on the bed,” he said.
“No! Not the bed.”
Her voice startled him as he grabbed hold of the bags as if they might explode if he put them down.
